Save Robins from Massacre in England!

The English government is weighing plans that would allow people to kill robins and destroy their nests. We can’t let that happen.

Robins have been a part of the British landscape for centuries. They may not be the rarest or most impressive of birds, but they are vital to the ecosystem — and they’re consistently voted the nation’s “favourite garden bird.” But Natural England, an advisory group to the government, recently recommended that citizens be granted a licence to murder robins, destroy their nests and take their eggs.

Natural England claims that the birds threaten the public’s “health and safety.” But conservationists say that any possible “hazard” these tiny birds could pose is miniscule — and that Natural England’s proposed plan is downright cruel.

The general licence that Natural England is recommending would allow people to take action against the birds without recording their actions, meaning the government would have no way to track how many baby birds were being left mo therless or of the methods people were using to kill them. These measures have backfired before: In previous years, birds placed under “general licence” have been slaughtered in such large numbers that their population numbers suffered.

And robins aren’t the only birds being targeted: Pied wagtails and starlings may also be candidates for licenced massacre.

We should be acting to protect wildlife, not kill it en masse. Tell the government to reject Natural England’s bird-murder plan!